Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Tell Governor Perdue to STOP Playing Politics With Our Schools!

Many of you have voiced your opposition to SB390, the Governor's prescription for failure in our classrooms, and your voice has made a difference! Seventy Georgia Democratic House members stood strong for education and voted against this bill. And the Perdue Team knows that you have joined with them to reject this legislation that guts local control while providing no additional money for schools. You told them that school principals, media specialists and teacher training are at least as important as athletics, art and field trips. Now, your help is needed more than ever!

Governor Perdue and his team are feeling the heat. Last week, in a desperate move, Governor Perdue sent an e-mail to Georgia school principals and instructed them to forward an attached letter to their staff. In the letter, the Governor says, "........As excited as I am about this proposal, I am concerned about some of the e-mails and letters we have received from educators about the proposal."

The Perdue Team thinks that it's okay to use state and local resources to lobby this key block of voters. They think that Georgia principals have nothing better to do than deliver his e-mail. Call the Governor (404-656-1776) TODAY, and tell him to use his own campaign money and staff to deliver his mail: Georgia educators are not his personal mail clerks!

Last Thursday when Georgia PTA representatives and others erupted in applause following an impassioned opposition speech, Speaker Richardson threatened to expel them from the House gallery. Please call Speaker Richardson at (404) 656-5020 or (770) 445-4438, and tell him that you want representatives who will not expel parents and teachers from the debate on education!

With this bill now headed back to the Georgia Senate for approval of minor changes, there is still time to stop what the Atlanta Journal today called, "the legislative equivalent of non-dairy whipped topping." Check their editorial at:

http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/stories/0217edschool.html

Please call, e-mail or fax your legislators, especially your senators, and the Governor TODAY and encourage others to do the same. Tell them:

In any Teacher's Classroom 65%=Failure.
TAKE ACTION TODAY: OPPOSE SB 390
If you do not know who your representative is, please go to
http://www.vote-smart.org/ .
To find your representative's phone or fax number, please go to http://www.legis.ga.gov/legis/2005_06/house/05alpha.htm .

CALL GOVERNOR PERDUE
ASK HIM NOT TO SIGN SB 390
(404) 656-1776

***Standard and Poors has published a study on the efficacy of this legislation and has found that no relationship can be established between the bill's proposed funding formula and academic success. See the AJC article about the study here: http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/0223metschoolbudget.html

or view the full study here:

http://csd.org/csdrpdc/pdfs/65_paper_schoolmatters.pdf

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